Role of TGF-ß3 in modulating inflammatory responses and wound healing processes in ischemic ulcers in atherosclerotic patients.

Ischemic ulcers pose a multifaceted clinical dilemma for patients with atherosclerosis, frequently compounded by suboptimal wound healing mechanisms. The dual function of Transforming Growth Factor Beta 3 (TGF-ß3) in ischemic ulcer healing is not fully comprehended, despite its involvement in modulating inflammatory responses and tissue regeneration. The main aim of this investigation was to clarify the functions and mechanisms by which TGF-ß3 regulates inflammatory responses and promotes wound healing in patients with ischemic ulcers who have atherosclerosis. Between August 2022 and November 2023, this cross-sectional investigation was conducted on 428 patients diagnosed with atherosclerotic ischemic ulcers in Haikou, China. The expression and function of TGF-ß3 were examined throughout the different stages of wound healing, including inflammation, proliferation and remodelling. In addition to documenting patient demographics and ulcer characteristics, an analysis was conducted on biopsy samples to determine the expression of TGF-ß3, pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory markers. A subset of patients were administered topical TGF-ß3 in order to evaluate its therapeutic effects. The expression pattern of TGF-ß3 was found to be stage-dependent and significant, exhibiting increased levels during the phase of inflammation and reduced activity in subsequent phases. TGF-ß3 levels were found to be greater in ulcers that were larger and deeper, especially in inflammatory phase. TGF-ß3 applied topically induced discernible enhancement in ulcer healing parameters, such as reduction in ulcer depth and size. The therapeutic significance of TGF-ß3 was emphasised due to its twofold function of regulating the inflammatory environment and facilitating the regeneration of damaged tissues. Ischemic ulcer lesion healing is significantly influenced by TGF-ß3, which functions as an anti-inflammatory and pro-inflammatory mediator. Its correlation with ulcer characteristics and stages of healing suggests that it may have utility as a targeted therapeutic agent.

Nickel Nanoparticles Protruding from Molybdenum Carbide Micropillars with Carbon Layer-Protected Biphasic 0D/1D Heterostructures for Efficient Water Splitting.

It remains a tremendous challenge to achieve high-efficiency bifunctional electrocatalysts for both the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) for hydrogen production by water splitting. Herein, a novel hybrid of 0D nickel nanoparticles dispersed on the one-dimensional (1D) molybdenum carbide micropillars embedded in the carbon layers (Ni/Mo2C@C) was successfully prepared on nickel foam by a facile pyrolysis strategy. During the synthesis process, the nickel nanoparticles and molybdenum carbide were simultaneously generated under H2 and C2H2 mixed atmospheres and conformally encapsulated in the carbon layers. Benefiting from the distinctive 0D/1D heterostructure and the synergistic effect of the biphasic Mo2C and Ni together with the protective effect of the carbon layer, the reduced activation energy barriers and fast catalytic reaction kinetics can be achieved, resulting in a small overpotential of 96 mV for the HER and 266 mV for the OER at the current density of 10 mA cm-2 together with excellent durability in 1.0 M KOH electrolyte. In addition, using the developed Ni/Mo2C@C as both the cathode and anode, the constructed electrolyzer exhibits a small voltage of 1.55 V for the overall water splitting. The novel designed Ni/Mo2C@C may give inspiration for the development of efficient bifunctional catalysts with low-cost transition metal elements for water splitting.

Reduced antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of propofol at high-dose on morbidly obese patients.

This study was aimed to investigate differences in antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of propofol at two commonly used dosing schedules on morbidly obese patients. Twenty-two morbidly obese patients were randomly divided into two groups, namely, TBW (dosing based on total body weight) and LBW (dosing based on lean body weight) groups. Three biomarkers, i.e. superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) were measured as indicators of the level of oxidation stress reaction. Pro-inflammatory cytokines including Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and Interleukin-8 (IL-8) were used to describe the degree of inflammation. Plasma levels of SOD, MDA and NO were increased and reached a peak value 0.5h after anesthesia induction, but the increase was smaller in the LBW group compared with the TBW group. Besides, plasma concentrations of IL-6 and IL-8 were also increased and attained a peak level 0.5h after anesthesia induction, but the increase was higher in the TBW group compared with the LBW group. The LBW-based dosing of propofol had more potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects than the TBW-based dosing during anesthesia induction period on morbidly obese patients. This study provided a dosing recommendation of propofol for morbidly obese patients.

Deformation Assessment of the Manually Pre-Bent Titanium Miniplates in Orthognathic Surgery With Finite Element Analysis.

ABSTRACT: This study summarized the literature regarding the application of pre-bent titanium miniplates in orthognathic surgery and evaluated the extra deformation of the manually pre-bent titanium miniplates via finite element analysis for acquiring higher surgical accuracy. The literature was reviewed with a chart. Three models of titanium miniplates with different thicknesses (1.0 mm, 0.8 mm, 0.6 mm) were created using COMSOL Multiphysics software for biomechanical behavior analysis. The 3 models were virtually bent into 5 angles (15 degree, 30 degree, 45 degree, 60 degree, 80 degree). respectively to simulate the preoperative virtual bending, then to simulate the practical manual bending via finite element analysis. The stresses and displacements of these models were recorded. The models from virtual bending simulation and manual bending simulation were registered to analyze the deviations. The results showed that the maximum stress and the displacement deviations between the virtual bending models and the manual bending models increased with the thickness and bending angle of the pre-bent miniplate models. To improve the surgical accuracy, measures should be applied to the manually pre-bent titanium miniplates to reduce the extra deformation when the plate being thicker and the bending angle being larger.

[Pharmacokinetics of a cisatracurium dose according to fat-free mass for anesthesia induction in morbidly obese patients].

OBJECTIVE: To compare the pharmacokinetics of cisatracurium between normal weight patients and morbidly obese patients. METHODS: Twelve obese ASA I-II patients (BMI≥35 kg/m2) undergoing laparoscopic Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and 12 normal weight ASA I-II patients (BMI of 18.5-24 kg/m2) undergoing laparoscopic surgery were enrolled. The obese patients were given a cisatracurium dose of 0.15 mg/kg according to the fat-free mass (FFM), and the non-obese patients received a dose of 0.15 mg/kg according to the total body weight. Plasma concentrations of cisatracurium was monitored in the patients with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) before anesthetic induction and at 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 15, and 20 min after cisatracurium administration and the pharmacokinetic parameters were computed. SBP, DBP, HR, MAP, SpO2 and PetCO2 were recorded before anesthetic induction (T0) and at 1 min (T1), 2 min (T2), 4 min (T3) after cisatracurium administration. RESULTS: Compared with those measured at T0, SBP, DBP and MAP in the 2 groups were significantly decreased at the time points of T1-3 (P<0.05). Compared with the non-obese patients, the obese patients showed significantly increased Hct level (P<0.05). The total clearance, apparent volume of distribution, and distribution and elimination half-life of the drug were similar between the 2 groups (P>0.05). The plasma concentration of cisatracurium at T1-2 was significantly decreased in the obese patients compared with that in the non-obese patients (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Cisatracurium doses according to fat-free mass is clinically reasonable for inducing anesthesia in morbidly obese patients, but due to a prolonged muscle relax onset time, the timing of tracheal intubation should be delayed by 1-2 min.

[Generation of chemical-inducible activation tagging T-DNA insertion lines of Arabidopsis thaliana].

Using an estrogen-inducible expression XVE (LexA-VP16-Estragon Receptor) system, we have generated approximately 40 000 independent T-DNA insertion lines of Arabidopsis thaliana. Segregation analyses of about 18000 lines indicated that 51.6% of them contain single T-DNA insertions and that the average insertion number is 1.38 copies per line. Mutants displaying a variety of morphological alterations were identified, including those that affect development of roots,hypocotyls, leaves, floral organs and seeds as well as the flowering time.